Card Factory 11-month sales up 6% to £506m

Wakefield-based greeting card and gift retailer Card Factory said in a trading update its total sales for the 11 months ended December 31, 2024, rose 6.2% to £506.6 million.

“Robust revenue growth with expectations for full year adjusted profit before tax unchanged …” said Card Fact0ry.

“Total store revenue increased by +5.7% including positive impact of +32 net new stores …

“Like-for-Like (LFL) store revenue grew +3.9%, reflecting further development of our store estate and the strength of our value and quality proposition …

“Encouraging growth in gifts and celebration essentials ranges of +6.1% LFL, driven by the introduction of new categories and expansion of existing ranges, alongside positive card growth of +1.4% LFL …”

Card Factory shares rose as much as 7%.

In a Christmas trading update, Card Factory said: “Good Christmas trading performance in line with expectations in November and December with total revenue growth of +4.7%. This was driven by higher average basket value which reflects expanded ranges and sales of gift and celebration essentials …

“LFL store revenue growth of +3.0% in November and December reflecting the strength of our seasonal Christmas offer alongside the positive impact of our ongoing space optimisation programme …

“New and expanded gift categories resonated with customers with new confectionery ranges, licensed ranges and soft toys performing particularly well, alongside positive impact of a new value focused Christmas card offer.”

In its outlook, the company said: “The board expects to deliver FY25 adjusted profit before tax (excluding one-off items) in line with current market expectations, reflecting robust revenue growth and the benefits of our previously announced productivity and efficiency programme.

“The changes to National Living Wage and Employer National Insurance Contributions will result in annual cost inflation of c.£14 million in FY26.

“We expect to offset this through our proven approach which includes our ongoing productivity and efficiency programme, as well as range development and pricing, while continuing to invest in our future growth.

“Despite these inflationary pressures, we currently expect to deliver a mid-to-high single digit percentage increase in adjusted profit before tax in FY26.”

Card Factory CEO Darcy Willson-Rymer said: “We are pleased to have delivered another successful Christmas trading period. Thanks to the hard work of colleagues across the business, growth was driven by further progress against our strategic initiatives and execution of our commercial offer.

“Expanded ranges and our compelling gift and celebration essentials offer increased basket values during the period, whilst we also saw a resilient performance in seasonal cards, with customers responding well to our strong value and quality ranges.

“Continued revenue growth, combined with the benefits of our productivity and efficiency programme, have enabled us to navigate a challenging retail environment and deliver a robust performance in the second half.

“As a result, we expect to deliver full year profits in line with expectations and remain well positioned to manage inflationary pressures in the near term, as we continue to deliver on our strategic growth ambitions.”